The other 50 players move on to the second day beginning July 8th on the rails between Deadwood City and the Big Muddy.

SUNDAY LIST: Who are the best catchers in The Beer League? - OR - Who were the best catchers prior to integration?

The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) is a non-elitist (although there is a subset) organization of baseball fans, scholars, statisticians and experts whose purpose is simply to celebrate baseball and its history. Periodically SABR publishes various compilations of articles on the many facets of the National Pastime. Last Wednesday, the latest such periodical reached my mailbox - The 38th volume of The Baseball Research Journal - containing 24 great pieces on various topics. The one that caught my eye for this Sunday List: Best Catchers. There are two articles on catching one of which by Chuck Rosciam (www.baseballcatchers.com) provided the basis for this week's list.

In an article that I hope is linked to his website he discusses and then ranks catchers by category (games caught per season, runs created, on base percentage, errors and the lie). After a discussion and a listing of 17 different topics, Chuck presents his, well defended, normalized, averaged, greatness measures which purports to rank (at least by these well defined measures) catchers in order. Given the limitations of Glory's Beer League (i.e. must have debuted prior to April 15, 1947) I only list those actually eligible and playing in The Beer League. Here they are -

Other catchers in Rosciam's top ten were Johnny Bench, Gary Carter, Ivan Rodriguez, Thurman Munson, and Bill Freehan. Left out of Rosciam's study but prominently featured in The Beer League are the catchers of the Negro Leaguers. I will inject them, per my view, in his list. Thus, here is the list of the top catchers in The Beer League per Chuck Rosciam and Ted Knorr.

11 King Kelly, Nirvana Nites - not a Negro Leaguer but unranked by Rosciam - I assume ineligible due to games played at other positions

Other Beer League Utility Catchers
12 Jimmie Foxx, Nirvana Nites - did catch 108 major league games
13 John Beckwith, Paradise Pythians - did not embarrass himself as a Negro League catcher but principally a shortstop or third baseman
14 Cap Anson, Olympics - 83 MLB games
15 Wilbur Rogan, Buddha Belly - not sure if Chuck is aware (who am I kidding, of course he is) but Bullet Joe was the top catcher in the Philippines during his pre-Negro League career

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